gwern comments on Should you try to do good work on LW? - Less Wrong

36 Post author: cousin_it 05 July 2012 12:36PM

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Comment author: gwern 05 July 2012 04:06:35PM 16 points [-]

Yvain is a great contributor to LW and has the potential to be a star writer, but it seems to me that writing on LW doesn't test his limits, compared to trying new audiences. Likewise, my own work on decision theory math would've been held to a higher standard if the primary audience were mathematicians (though I hope to remedy that).

But would either of you have worked on them at all outside LW's confines? Ceteris paribus, it'd be better to work in as high-status rigorous a community as possible, but ceteris is never paribus.

Comment author: cousin_it 05 July 2012 04:56:50PM *  7 points [-]

Good point, I agree with RobertLumley and you that doing good work on LW is better than doing nothing. But if you're already doing good work by LW standards (and you are!), it probably makes sense to move beyond.

Comment author: Yvain 07 July 2012 05:28:38PM *  7 points [-]

Thank you for the compliments. I don't know much about mathematics, but if you've really proven a new insight into Godel's theorem that sounds very impressive and you should certainly try to get it published formally. But I'm not sure what you're suggesting I should do. I mean, I've been talking to Luke about maybe helping with some SIAI literature, but that's probably in the same category as here.

My career plan is medicine. I blog as a hobby. One day I would like to write about medicine, but I need a job and some experience before I can do that credibly. If you or anyone else have anything else specific and interesting/important you think I should be (or even could be) doing, please let me know. Bonus points if it involves getting paid.

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